Spring
football camp at Lafayette College begins on Tuesday. Coach John Garrett has
not yet posted a preseason depth chart, but I can almost give him a pass this
time because he has so many new coaches who haven’t had a chance to do any evaluations
yet.
I
can also say this. We can make some calculated guesses based on the starting lineups
from the final game of the 2018 season against Lehigh. No one involved with the
Leopards’ program wants to rehash that game, right? Neither do I.
But,
for the record, Lafayette last-game starters who are back this year are: quarterback
Sean O’Malley; wide receivers Julian Spigner and Nick Pearson; tight end Steve Stilianos;
offensive linemen Jake Marotti, John Burk and Gavin Barclay; defensive linemen
Malik Hamm, Harrison Greenhill and Demetrius Breedlove; linebacker Major Jordan
and defensive backs Yasir Thomas and Eric Mitchell.
One
other starter was wide receiver Tim Payne, but the freshman has decided he will
leave Lafayette at the end of the current semester. The last sentence of his “goodbye
note” on Twitter was a bit disconcerting to me. “My next goal is to find a
school where I feel at home, comfortable, and will allow me to excel not only
in track and football, but in life as well,” he wrote.
I
thought that’s exactly what the Lafayette experience was supposed to be all about.
In fact, I have always thought the Leopards were student-athletes, not athletic
students. Have great Division I athletics exposure, but also work hard in the
classroom and come away with a degree that will translate to success for a
lifetime.
